RE: [IFWP] Joe Sims' confession

[Roberto Gaetano <Roberto.Gaetano@etsi.fr>]

Michael,

The two cuts you provide are not recent news, and have been discussed at
length since the events, more than six months ago. But since you bring the
subject up again, let me point out that the two cuts refer to two different
facts: the initial contacts to all possible candidates, and the final call
to the chosen nine.
I thought that this was clear from the context, but since I may be wrong,
let me point out that, to my understanding, Joe Sims confessed to have
called the 9 to-be interim Directors (selected by Jon Postel) to tell them
they were the chosen ones. As you note, he already admitted "his own
culpability" for this tremendous sin.

Mr. Pickering's question was a different one, though.
He was interested in who contacted *all the potential candidates* (following
"advice from a wide range of individuals and groups ..."), and on how the
selection process was done.
And to this, Mr. Sims answered explaining the process and saying that he did
not know who did the first contacts for each of the contacted persons. BTW,
the number of people contacted has been said to be "fairly large". From what
I can deduct from the rumors floating around in those days, this number was
probably higher than 50, and it is perfectly reasonable that Joe Sims did
not know by heart who contacted whom (also because it was not something that
could be qualified as "top importance matter"). In fact, I had the
impression from the transcriptions that this answer sounded reasonable to
Chairman Pickering as well, but maybe you are aware of something I don't
know.

Of course, at that time nobody could imagine that, six months later, ....
;>)

Regards
Roberto



> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Michael Sondow [SMTP:msondow@iciiu.org]
> Sent:	Thursday, May 20, 1999 6:30 AM
> To:	ICANN
> Cc:	Esther Dyson; Mike Roberts; Paul Twomey; Nikki Vajrabukka; WTO Trade
> Policy Review Board; George Conrades; Greg Crew; Frank Fitzsimmons; Hans
> Kraaijenbrink; Professor Jun Marai; Geraldine Capdeboscq; Eugenio Triana;
> Linda S. Wilson; Joe Sims; Al Gore; Chip Pickering; Connie Morella; Thomas
> Davis; Gil Gutknecht; Eddie Bernice Johnson; Jim Barcia; Mark Harrington;
> Richard Russell; Paul Scolese; James Tierney; William Daley; Madeleine
> Albright; Theresa Amato; James Love; Jay Fenello; Ronda Hauben; Karl
> Auerbach; Beckwith Burr; Larry Irving; Gordon Cook; Tony Rutkowski; Tom
> Lowenhaupt; Nick Patience; Jeri Clausing; U.S. Ho. of Reps. Commerce
> Committee; U.S. Secretary of State; Milton Mueller; Ellen Rony; Ronald
> Wyden; Jonathan Zittrain; Larry Lessig; Shari Steele; Troy Davis; Erick
> Iriarte; Eberhard W Lisse; Willie Schatz; Kevin M. Kelly; Hector L.
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> Howard Sartori; Kathryn Kleiman; Barbara Dooley; Bret A. Fausett; Francis
> Gurry; WTO Media; Lidia Carlos-Silvetti (ERAD); Committee on Trade and
> Development; Trade and Development Center; WTO Information;
> dnso-ip@world.std.com; list@ifwp.org; DOMAIN-POLICY@LISTS.INTERNIC.NET
> Subject:	[IFWP] Joe Sims' confession
> 
> On November 11, 1998, Joe Sims, attorney to ICANN, confessed to
> having committed perjury before the elected representatives of the
> American people, in a written and signed affidavit to the U.S. House
> of Representatives Committee on Science. 
> 
> This is his statement, written by him in the third person in an
> attempt to distance himself from his own culpability: "The final
> decisions on who should be invited to serve as interim At Large
> Board members were made by Dr. Postel, after receiving comments,
> suggestions, and advice from a wide range of individuals and groups
> (not named [ed.]). At his direction, Mr. Sims contacted each of them
> to invite them to be included in the interim group of At Large Board
> members to be proposed to the Department of Commerce."
> 
> The following is a transcription of Joe Sim's testimony, under oath
> to tell the truth so help him God, to the House of Representatives
> four weeks prior to that statement:
> 
>    Chairman PICKERING. Going back to who selected the nine interim
> board members, the nine? Was that something that Mr. Postel or Mr.
> Magaziner, who called the individuals up and said, "Would you like
> to serve on this interim board?"
>    Mr. SIMS. I don't think I actually know the answer of who
> actually made the phone calls.
>    Chairman PICKERING. But this is a key question of accountability
> and this is a very legitimate issue. And let's just be forthright
> here. Somebody knows who called the nine members on the board.
>    Mr. SIMS. Oh, sure. Oh, sure. And we could find that out. I just
> don't personally know because the process was---
>    Chairman PICKERING. Ms. Burr, do you know?
>    Ms. BURR. I know that it was nobody in the U.S. Government that
> called them up and invited them---
>    Mr. SIMS. Yes, I'm sure---
>    Chairman PICKERING. Does anyone on this panel know who selected
> the nine members on the board?
>    Mr. SIMS. Well, let me try to describe how the process works, and
> I think I'll be able to answer your question even though I can't
> tell you precisely what person called what person. The process, as I
> said, was a process of trying to gather and create consensus around
> a group of people. There were are large number of people involved in
> that process. And, obviously, John Postel was at the center of that
> process, but he certainly wasn't---he personally I think does not
> know most of these people. And he certainly was not the person who
> was suggesting them or coming up with the ideas. The ideas came from
> all around the world, and then variou people who were able to
> contact them, were asked to contact them. And that information was
> then fed back.
>    And, in fact, I think the record would show that those kinds of
> contacts, "Would you be interested in serving on this board?" were
> made with a fairly large number of people. And we got a number of
> "No, thank you, I would not." And we got some, "Yes, I guess I might
> under some circumstances, tell me more." And then, finally, we got
> at least this nine people to say yes.
>    If it was a critical piece of information for this Committee, I'm
> sure with a little due dilligence I could find out exactly who made
> the phone call. I just don't happen to know it.
>                     ..........................
> 
> This is the man who wrote the ICANN bylaws. This is the man who, in
> collusion with Jon Postel and Michael Roberts, destroyed the White
> Paper process and its product, the IFWP. This is the man and these
> are the people being protected by Beckwith Burr, at the risk of her
> position and her career.